This invention relates to electrical connectors and, in particular, to a high density ribbon cable connector wherein a predetermined minimum spacing is maintained between all features of any contact and other nearby contacts.
Ribbon cable connectors for mass terminating to ribbon cable at a location remote from an end of the cable, such as in a daisy chain configuration, are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,820,055; 4,068,912; 4,475,786; and 4,693,533. As the downsizing of electronic devices has progressed, more contacts are placed in smaller and smaller connectors to consume less space on a printed circuit board. The complementary connectors, typically a cable connector, must also contain a higher density of contacts. As the density of contacts in ribbon cable connectors increases, the spacing between adjacent conductors in ribbon cable adapted to be terminated to the ribbon cable connector decreases correspondingly. Typically, the interconductor spacing is reduced to one-half of the spacing of the previous generation cable. As the spacing between ribbon cable connectors decreases, positioning contacts in a connector housing at an appropriate spacing, separated by dielectric material while positioning insulation displacements plates in an array appropriate for mass termination to the ribbon cable has become more critical. Small variations in the positioning of contacts in the housing or movement of contacts during termination of the ribbon cable can cause shorting between adjacent conductors. Due to the closeness of spacing of the contacts, greater attention must be paid than in the past to the sufficiency of dielectric material or air space separating the closest portions of adjacent contacts to assure that the contacts can withstand voltage levels sufficient to make the connector of practical use.